FORT MYERS, Fla. – For six and a half innings on Thursday, it looked like smooth sailing for the Edgewood College baseball team. However, when things turned for the worse in their doubleheader the Eagles never recovered. Plymouth State University rallied for a walk-off 6-5 victory in game one and then rolled over the Eagles 16-3 in game two, in the teams' doubleheader at the Lee County Player Development Center.
Edgewood College (3-4) came out on fire scoring four runs in the top of the first inning in support of starting pitcher Adam Eck. Nick Lehner and Garrett Bogucki had back to back RBI singles, before Alex Fowler delivered the big blow, a two-out, two-run double which put the Eagles ahead 4-0. Andrew Lauritzen drove home Danny Appino with an RBI single in the second inning to extend the Eagles lead.
Plymouth State University (5-6) answered with a run in the bottom of the first, but Eck held the Panthers at bay for most of the game. Eck held the Panthers to five hits and two runs through six innings. The Eagles defense helped Eck by turning double plays in both the fifth and sixth innings to escape trouble.
However, real trouble arrived for the Eagles in the bottom of the seventh with the Eagles holding a 5-2 lead. With one Panther on first and two outs, the Eagles couldn't get the final out of the game. A double by Jake Krajewski scored one run, and after an Eagle pitching change another run came home on an error to make the score 5-4. Then with bases loaded PSU's Lucas Mancini delivered a two-run single to complete a four-run final inning rally and win the game.
Lehner and Bogucki each had two hits for the Eagles offense, while Fowler led the way with two runs batted in. Appino swiped two bases to bring his team-high total to four on the season. Eck ended up with a no decision going 6.2 innings, giving up two earned runs on seven hits. The lefty struck out a career-high six batters. Bryce Lashley suffered the loss in relief, falling to 1-1 on the year.
The spirits of the Eagles didn't improve in the second game of the day. Already trailing 1-0 after the first inning, Plymouth State University unloaded for eight runs on seven hits in the second inning, giving the Panthers a commanding 9-0 lead. They would eventually lead 12-0 before the Eagles broke through in the third inning on a Lehner sacrifice fly, scoring Appino from third base. Edgewood College managed another run in the fifth on a Bogucki sacrifice fly, but didn't register a hit until the bottom of the seventh inning. Callen Gavic drove home Jonathan Roehler with an RBI single.
Edgewood College had three hits in the game, from Roehler, Gavic and a double by Bogucki. Starting pitcher Mason Maziarka's Eagle debut ended up in a loss, going 1.1 innings. Erick Wendt, Ryan Howell and AJ Verhage finished out the game, with Howell striking out five batters.
Edgewood College will play their final doubleheader in Florida tomorrow with a pair of games against UW-Stout. The Eagles and Blue Devils will be underway at 9:00 a.m. eastern time. The Eagles spring trip concludes with a single game on Saturday against Amherst College.
